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Hope at Christmas

Some of us get depressed at Christmas. Perhaps we are missing friends and family, or we could be thinking of those who have passed on. Maybe that very un-Jewish manger scene gets you down. There are other circumstances that can get us down. However, Christians can remember the hope that we have. Credit: Unsplash / Tim Mossholder Step up on the hill and get a bigger picture. We have all sinned (Rom. 3:23, Rom. 6:23) against the holy and righteous God, yet he has mercy on us. God the Son is the Creator (Col. 1:16, John 1:1-3), who humbled himself and took on human form (Phil 2:6-11) and died for us while we were yet sinners (Rom. 5:8). He bodily rose from the dead (Luke 24:6-7, Acts 2:32) and we are adopted as children of God (John 1:12-13, Rom. 8:15-17). Yes, we have our down times, worse for some than others. We need to lift our focus off ourselves and our circumstances and remember what God has told us. We do have hope. Not only at Christmas, but always. Even though some of

Making Scripture Insufficient

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  This is one of those times when what appears to be a coincidence may be providential instead. Many of the past few posts have been about the authority of Scripture and how the Bible is under attack in one way or another. A short time later, I came across a two-part message on the sufficiency of Scripture that not only works with the other posts, but it is excellent by itself. Credit: FreeDigitalPhotos / Matt Banks The messages that prompted this article are by Dr. John MacArthur. They were preached in 1985 and by my reckoning are more important today than they were all those years ago. Christians need to read their Bibles. Although that is said frequently, many who profess faith in Christ are dismally lacking in knowledge and understanding of what Scripture says. God puts a strong emphasis on reading and meditating on the Bible because it not only helps us grow spiritually, but it imparts wisdom. Also, having the Word in your spirit gives wisdom for t

Christian Instruction Hindered by Evolutionism

A word that is common among Bible-believing teachers is edify. (This word has the same root as edifice .)These days, it generally means to instruct and build up people spiritually; a major part of The Question Evolution Project is to edify Christians, for example. Evolutionism hinders the edification of Christians. Credit: Pixabay / WikimediaImages Climb up on yonder hill for a bigger perspective. Modern science was built on biblical principles , but Christians ceded science over to secularists when Darwin and Lyell came on the scene. In a comparatively short time, it was unfashionable to believe the Bible and to understand it properly. People didn't want to look ignorant, so they tried to mix the Bible and current trends of atheistic science views. Bad idea. Today, people are confused and do not realize that they are damaging the core of the gospel message, and that compromising on the truth of creation is ridiculous because the evidence for recent creation is on the side

The Temptations of Jesus: It is Written

Christians who use their Bibles for more than just decorations and actually read them are familiar with the narratives concerning the temptations of Jesus by Satan. When tempted, Jesus replied with, "It is written". The Bible should be the foundation for our lives and conduct, and "It is written" should be second nature to us under many circumstances. Satan Tried To Tempt Jesus by James Tissot Jesus is an example to us. Even though he was God the Son, he knew Scripture. So did other people in the Bible. Someone may object that they were special and inspired by God, but we are to know the Bible which gives us life and guidance. When I was a child, I was told that Satan could not enter a room that contained a Bible, which doesn't hold up when we see apostate churches loaded up with them in the pew racks. Also, Satan was able to step up his game by quoting Scripture as well, but took verses out of context as well as misquoted — just like he did in Eden (Ge

Creation from Way Up Yonder

Here in the United States, Thanksgiving Day is tomorrow. While we need to be thankful to God every day for his blessings, Thanksgiving is a special day and even a theological act . There have been times when I have suggested getting up on the hill — that is, a larger perspective. How about perspective from the International Space Station? Captain Barry Wilmore image credit: NASA I camped out on this article for a while, so at this point the 50th anniversaries have come and gone. The linked article was written prior to those events. Captain Williams has logged many hours in space on the shuttle Atlantis and on the ISS. He reminds us that the creation itself was a miraculous event, as is our redemption in Jesus Christ. We can give him honor, glory, and worship forever. Take some time to thank him, pilgrim. I’ve had the privilege few ever experience. To date, I’ve spent not just a few hours or a week in space, but 178 days. I lived there (most of the time on the space station)

Evangelism and Evolution

People tend to believe in an old earth and accept evolution, often shying away from scientific evidence to the contrary and affirming recent creation. To stand for creation and the young earth invites ridicule from folks who think they are "scientifically literate" and smarter than the rest of us. This is an impediment to evangelism. Credit: Good Free Photos Christians should know that people need Jesus. We are to preach repentance and faith for salvation, but when we compromise on the authority of Scripture and reject creation, we are tacitly admitting that we do not fully believe the Bible. Adding long ages and evolution to evangelism is detrimental to the gospel message. Evolutionary ideas have religious implications. The atheistic notion that nature creates itself—from the Big Bang to the diversity of life on Earth—is contrary to the biblical truth that God created nature. Last month we saw how this strikes at the very doctrine of God. Evangelism deals directly

Inspiration and the Bible

We have moments when we feel inspired to do something, such as write an article or music, design an application, or somesuch. This kind of inspiration is far different than what is meant when Christians say the Bible is inspired. In that case, it is θεόπνευστος theopneustos, which essentially means God-breathed . There is more to it than this. John Wycliffe reading his translation of the Bible to John of Gaunt , Ford Madox Brown, 1847 There are theological liberals and unbelievers who say that the Bible is inspired like other impressive human compositions, but is not all that special. They reject the inerrancy of Scripture , which leaves them in a world of hurt. After all, they cannot be consistent by rejecting creation, the Genesis Flood, miracles of Jesus, end-times prophecy, and other things — yet claiming that they trust in Christ for their eternal destiny! Atheists and other Bible-deniers seem to want to go to Hell, attempting to justify their suppression of truth by clai

Cannabis and the Christian

There are many discussions and points of view using words like cannabis, hemp, marijuana, and so forth. Unfortunately, there is a great deal of confusion, especially from those who want to legalize pot for recreation. Some Christians want to get high, others detest the idea. I have struggled to learn the differences between hemp and marijuana. Some said that it's the same plant but the younger version is where the THC (the chemical that alters your state of consciousness) comes from, and the bigger ones become hemp. Not quite. Apparently versions of cannabis are virtually indistinguishable by sight, but hemp is legal in may places and does not require special growing conditions. It also has only a fraction of THC. This article seems reliable . Unfortunately, pro-reefer folks seem to be like climate change cultists , anti-vaxxers , and evolutionists who ignore data that they dislike and cherry-pick information that seems to confirm their biases. There are also logic problem

Scriptural Truth can be Clearly Seen

As we have seen, major movements seldom happen at one specific moment in time. The Reformation is considered to have begun on October 31, 1517 , but some of the groundwork was established years before by people like John Wycliffe and William Tyndale. (Aspects of the Reformation continued after Luther's time.) A major focus of the Reformation was the clarity of Scripture. Credit: Freeimages / Jorge Avina The expensive word for this is perspicuity.  The Bible can be clearly understood regarding important doctrines even by us reg'lar folk, but it also contains a wealth of information to keep someone growing in faith and understanding for a lifetime. The Roman Catholic Church did not want the people to know what Scripture really  said, and it fought to keep the Word of God out of the hands of the people. (For that matter, look at how cults tell people that the Bible can be understood only through their sources and people should not read it for themselves. Some even have thei

Christian Worship and Evolution

The natural response of those who believe in salvation through Jesus Christ aone is worship. It should not be necessary to consider who or what God is, we should  know that God is our Creator and Redeemer. When people in the Bible were in the presence of the Almighty, they were overcome with a sense of their own unworthiness, reverence, and tremendous awe. They worshiped him. Credit: Unsplash /  Diana Simumpande Indeed, ancient Christian creeds like the Apostolic and Nicene begin by affirming that God is our Creator. Unfortunately, too many professing Christians have chosen reject biblical authority. They ride the owlhoot trail and try to mix long ages and evolution with biblical Christianity. This contaminates true worship. It also demonstrates ignorance of the Bible's plain teachings as well as adding atheistic interpretations of modern science philosophies to their worship. How confused is that? God is not weak and did not need  millions of years to cause life to evolve,

Reason and Faith

Something I emphasize that is very important is definitions , as regular readers of this site and especially Piltdown Superman have read. I have noticed an increase in the tactics of theological liberals, political leftists, climate change cultists , evolutionists, and atheists to make an assertion of a false definition and build illogical but passionate arguments from there. Here, we look at faith. Credit: Pixabay /  Orlando "Didn't you date Faith's sister, Cowboy Bob?" I did have a date that woman. I wanted to, though. Let's leave personal history aside and move on. Atheists essentially proclaim themselves as harbingers of reason. When pressed to give logical arguments, they proceed to produce logical fallacies by the bushel. Atheists and evolutionists insist on conflating science  with naturalism , then proclaiming that anything to do with God is not scientific. They also denigrate presuppositional apologetics where Christians have the Word of God as

Evidence and Asking Questions

In the area of Christian apologetics, we make reasoned defenses for the truth of the Bible and special creation. It is the nature of this work to have people ask questions (1 Peter 3:15). Skeptics often try to come up with loaded or trick questions, saying that they "lack belief" for the existence of God. Such a claim can be met. Although it is presented as neutral, the unbeliever is making a claim with the "lack belief" statement. Someone who lacks belief is actually saying that the evidence does not exist for the existence of God, the truth of Scripture, creation science, and so forth. Similarly, that person may also be indicating that there is no evidence that he or she finds satisfying. Arguing to meet personal preferences is often pointless, as they have apparently already reached a decision to suppress the truth in unrighteousness (Rom. 1:18). Many times, misotheists try to put us on the defensive, but we don't need to cower to their "wisdom&qu

Creationists Giving Glory to God

We read in the Bible hear sermons, and read articles that mention the glory of God. It is actually a very involved concept, beyond just "making God look good" . Other people and I want to glorify God in our lives and what we write. It is a fair question to wonder if biblical creation science glorifies God. Credit: RGBStock / Archbob A big part of God's people giving him glory is reflecting his attributes. We must not steal his glory by proclaiming falsehoods instead of the truth, such as compromising on deep time and evolution when his Word clearly shows us otherwise. Recent creation glorifies God because it acknowledges His accuracy as a divine Author. By accuracy I mean telling it like it is. What kind of God would inspire His prophet Moses to record “For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day” if in fact nature made the heavens and the earth over billions of years? And if God failed to f

Praying to Plants?

This is one of those times when we may wonder if the apostasy of the end times is upon us, especially with the extremely rapid moral decline in society. It is one thing for people to have no concern or even contempt for God, but to pray and confess our sins to plants? Credit: freestocks.org Some Native Americans would pray to the spirits of the animals they had killed, and they had other elements of pantheism and animism in their eclectic religions. Now some global warming activists and owlhoots at an allegedly Christian seminary are having people confess their sins to plants. Union Theological Seminary was, for a short time, orthodox in its theology until it became extremely liberal. They are the ones involved in these shenanigans. Let's ride up on the hill and look at the bigger view for a spell. We have to look all the way back to Genesis, where God gave us dominion and stewardship over creation. Plants were created on the third day of creation week, with land animals an

Christians and Philosophy

Cowboys riding the long trail usually clam up, but once in a while, someone commences philosophizing. When the subject is met with little more than grunts from the others, silence ensues again. If you study on it, it seems that everybody has a philosophy of some sort. There are many philosophers throughout history, and many are relegated to history books. Le Philosophe by Henri Martin When people talk about philosophers, images of smug intellectuals taking solitary walks and pondering, or discussing their versions of the meaning of life while smoking pipes. I have stated that I find philosophy useless because I have no use for the ideas of Kierkegaard, Rousseau, Kant, and so on. However, I learned a few things about philosophy since then, especially the practice and purpose. Some folks shy away from philosophy as ungodly, referring to Colossians 2:8. Context, people! Chasing after worldly  philosophies can be very harmful, but the Bible is actually loaded with philosophy. Regu

Listen to my Bible Story?

Our choice of words is vital when we want to communicate about important subjects. An important reason of this is the connotations of words. For example, my mother took exception to my description of a fragrance: it reeks. It did reek, but that word implies that the fragrance was unpleasant. Credit: Clker clipart Words change their meanings over the years. One example is in Genesis 1:28 KJV, where God commanded mankind and animals to replenish the earth. Back in 1611, that was understood to mean fill, but newer translations avoid replenish. In A. Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes story, "The Adventure of Black Peter", we read: "The outhouse was the simplest of dwellings, wooden-walled, shingle-roofed, one window beside the door and one on the farther side. Stanley Hopkins drew the key from his pocket and had stooped to the lock, when he paused with a look of attention and surprise upon his face." As Americans can probably see, an outhouse  is more aptly n

Science and the Depravity of Man

It is interesting and sometimes fun to identify ways in which scientists have discovered things that were in the Bible long before. Yes, we know, the Bible is not a science textbook. When scientific items are mentioned, however, it is always correct. It seems that scientists are learning about human depravity. Credit: Freeimages / Cyan Li God's Word tells us in Jeremiah 17:9 that the heart of man is (depending on the translation) desperately sick, wicked corrupt, incurable. Our righteousness is repulsive to God (Isaiah 64:6, Psalm 10:4, Ephesians 2:1-5). We may have the notion that we are good people and God looks on us fondly, bragging to the angels about how wonderful we are, but that is the opposite of the truth. Our hearts are deceitful and corrupt, and we think we are doing good things for the right reasons, but that's not necessarily the case. Sure, sometimes people will do great things, but that is because God has placed knowledge of himself in our hearts (Romans

Virtue Signaling and Denying Genesis

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Over the years, this child has had to endure new expressions while riding the Christian Life Trail. Members of the body of Christ  have been lacking in their commitment to the Word of God almost from the get-go, as the early epistles will attest. It seems that things are getting worse nowadays. Some of the new expressions include woke and wokeness , critical race theory , and other anti-Christian humanistic philosophies that are found mostly on the political left and with liberal professing Christians. A large part of that is virtue signaling , which involves prideful "dig me!" trumpet sounding from those who seek the approval of men instead of proclaiming the truth and authority of Scripture. When these signals and philosophies come from professing Christians, they are even more disgusting than when leftists scream in the streets. Notice how there has been a great deal of news lately about professing Christians who have apostatized such as Mic

Confronting Atheistic Worldviews

When engaging your typical internet village atheist, the Christian apologist seldom encounters rational discussion. To use a common expression, I have found that these professing atheists are control freaks. Not only do they insist that their worldview is superior to ours because atheism,  they are hostile to our presentations of reason. Credit: Pixabay /  Arek Socha Atheists and other anti-creationists attempt to justify their worldviews and morality by attacking God and simultaneously saying they "lack belief" in his existence and creation. Evidence for his existence is rejected based on their materialistic presuppositions, not because of flaws in our logic or the evidence. The use of presuppositional apologetics is something that really puts burrs under their saddles because we give critiques of their worldviews, expose flaws in their epistemology , point out logical fallacies, and especially because we stand on the authority of God's Word.  Some get downright